A Conceptual Study of Cavity Aeroacoustics Control Using Porous Media Inserts

In this study, an integrated flow simulation and aeroacoustics prediction methodology is applied to testing a sound control technique using porous inserts in an open cavity. Large eddy simulation (LES) combined with a three-dimensional Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings (FW–H) acoustic analogy is employed to predict the flow field, the acoustic sources and the sound radiation. The Darcy pressure – velocity law is applied to conceptually mimic the effect of porous media placed on the cavity floor and/or rear wall. Consequently, flow in the cavity could locally move in or out through these porous walls, depending on the local pressure differences. LES with “standard” subgrid-scale models for compressible flow is carried out to simulate the flow field covering the sound source and near fields, and the fully three-dimensional FW–H acoustic analogy is used to predict the sound field. The numerical results show that applying the conceptual porous media on cavity floor and/or rear wall could decrease the pressure fluctuations in the cavity and the sound pressure level in the far field. The amplitudes of the dominant oscillations (Rossiter modes) are suppressed and their frequencies are slightly modified. The dominant sound source is the transverse dipole term, which is significantly reduced due to the porous walls. As a result, the sound pressure in the far field is also suppressed. The preliminary study reveals that using porous-inserts is a promising technology for flow and sound radiation control.